Fountain pen



March 4, 1952 H. H. ZQDTNER FOUNTAIN PEN 2 SHEETSSHEET 1 Original Filed March 3, 1947 Q MN mm fi T M T T & AW QWMW NW m m w m wwwwm ZV/ g whwnsw Qw Nw W N% QM, AN

N4 ml N T March 4, 1952 ZODTNER 2,587,949

FOUNTAIN PEN Original Filed March 5, 1947 2 SHEETS--SHEET 2 JUL/4 WM Patented Mar. 4, 1952 FOUNTAIN PEN Harlan H. Zodtner, Janesville, Wis., assignor to The Parker Pen Company, Janesville, Wis., a

corporation of Wisconsin Original application March 3, 1947, Serial No.

731,951, now Patent No. 2,522,554, dated September 19, 1950. Divided and this application June 20, 1950, Serial No. 169,130

My invention relates generally to fountain pens, and it has to do particularly with fountain pens having an ink reservoir adapted to be filled by capillary action, the ink also being retained in the reservoir by capillary action and subject to discharge to a writing surface under the control of capillary feed means.

One of the objects of my invention is to provide an improved fountain pen of the foregoing character.

Another object is to provide an improved capillary reservoir structure for a pen of the foregoing character, and which has large filling and write out capacities.

A further object is to provide an improved capillary filler type fountain pen having a filling capacity at least as great as pens having mechanical filling mechanisms, and which has the ability to fill quickly, retain the ink once thereservoir is filled, while permitting ready feed of substantially all the ink therefrom under the influence of capillary feed mechanism when the nib, or other writing element is engaged with the writing surface.

Still another object is to provide a capillary fountain pen having an improved filler element which is simple and easy to manufacture and assemble in a pen and which will not deteriorate or decrease in efiiciency over a long period ofuse.

Another object is to provide a capillaryv filler element having a capillaryink space so formed that it is self-venting, whereby a separate air vent is not required, and substantially all ofthe void space in the filler element may be utilized for ink storage.

Still another object is to provide a capillary fountain pen having an ink storage space which is'substantially unobstructed both longitudinally and laterally.

A further object is to provide a capillary filler element providing a capillary ink space of rela+ tively large total cross section and which is at the same time capable of rapid filling.

It is also an object-of my invention to provide a capillary fountain pen having an improved feed for feeding ink from the ink reservoir to the pen nib.

A further object is to provide-a capillary fountain pen having a capillary ink space of relatively large transverse cross section and aplurality of ink feed channels intersecting and communicating with the ink space across the entire transverse extent thereof to provide for rapid filling and to facilitate withdrawal of ink from the reservoir by the ink feed during writing.

6 Claims. (Cl. -50) Other objects of the invention are to provide a capillary filler element which may readily be assembled in and removed from a fountain pen; to provide a capillary filler element and feed defining a capillary system having a minimum of corners or sudden changes in cross-sectional area, whereby the possibility of detrimental capillary edge effect is reduced to a minimum and the pen will fill rapidly and completely, and willwrite out to a very high degree of efliciency; to provide a capillary filler element having readily predeter mined capillary characteristics; tov provide a capillary filler element having means for positively maintaining the spacing of the elements which define the capillary ink storage. space; to provide a capillary filler element formed by a rel:- atively small number of separate. members; and to provide novel means for. delivering ink from the spacing material of the capillary filler element to feed means.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the following description taken in connection with the appended drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary longitudinal sectional view through a fountain pen embodying my invention;

Fig. 21s a transverse sectional view taken along line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view taken alon line 3-3: of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view taken along line 4-4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view taken along line 5--5 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the bushing, for mounting the nib and feed bar;

Fig. '7 is a perspective view of the capillary filler element of the pen shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 8 is a top. plan view of the sheet. or strip from which the capillaryfiller element is formed;

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary, longitudinal sectional view showing a second embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary, longitudinal sectional view showing still another embodiment of: the invention;

Fig. 11 is a transverse, cross-sectional view taken along line H-ll of Fig. 10;

Fig. 12 is still another form of filler element in accordancewith the invention; and

Fig. 13 is a somewhat enlarged transverse cross-sectional viewtaken along line l3l-I3' of Fig. 12..

The present invention is illustrated in connection with a fountain pen of the desk type but it will be understood that the invention is equally well adapted for incorporation in a fountain pen of the pocket type or a fountain pen of the dual purpose type having a body adapted to receive either a short rear end piece for use as a pocket pen or an elongated tail piece for use as a desk pen.

Referring particularly to Fig. 1. of the drawings, there is shown for the purposes of illustration a fountain pen comprising a body or casing l formed of suitable material such as a plastic, and which for convenience in manufacturing and assembling is constituted by a. plurality of members or sections. Specifically, the body includes a barrel or forward section 2, a rear section 3 connected thereto as by a threaded joint 4, and a tail piece 5 connected to the rear section 3 as by a threaded joint 6. The forward section 2 is formed with an axially extending bore or chamber defining an ink reservoir chamber l and has an axial opening H extending from the reservoir chamber l0 through its forward or writing end.

A writing element is carried at the forward or writing end of the body 1 and is connected by suitable ink feed means to an ink storage reservoir hereinafter described. The writing element takes the form of a nib ['2 supported in the opening II with its writing end projecting beyond the end of the forward section 2 where it is exposed for writing. The nib 12 may be of any suitable form but preferably is formed with a generally cylindrical body portion l3 having a slot l4 (Figs. 1 and 3) extending along the underside thereof and a tapered'arcuate forward portion I5 formed with a slit l6 extending inwardly from the end to a pierce H. The

nib 12 preferably is mounted in the forward section 2 as by a bushing 20 secured as by external threads 2| in a counterbore 22 formed at the inner end of the opening II. The bushing 20 (Fig. 6) is formed with a bore 23 and a counterbore 24 which provide an internal flange .25. The nib I2 is adapted to be received snugly in the counterbore 24 with its inner end seated against the internal flange 25, whereby the nib 'I2 is appropriately positioned with respect to the other associated members. Extending through the flange 25 is a plurality of slots 26 (Figs. 1, 3 and 6) the purpose of which will be explained more in detail hereinafter.

A feed bar 38 is associated with the nib l2 and supported by the bushing 20, the body of the feed bar 30 being received snugly in the bore '24 and extending forwardly therefrom and into the nib I2. The feed bar 3!] is formed with a reduced forward extension 3| positioned to engage the nib forwardly of the nib pierce l! in the usual manner. Preferably, the feed bar 30 of slightly smaller diameter than the body 13 of the nib l2 and thus a generally arcuate capillary space 32 is provided between the feed bar 30 and the nib l2.

The capillary space 32 is connected with the ink storage reservoir by an ink feed slot 33 formed in the upper surface of the feed bar and extending from the rear end of the feed bar 30 to forwardly of the nib pierce I! in alignment with the pierce I! and the slit [6. .Preferably, additional feed slots 34 (Figs. 1 and 3) are provided in the feed bar 30 and extend from the inner end of the feed bar to the capillary space 32 between the nib l2 and the feedbar 30.

The opening ll preferably is provided with a relieved portion in its upper wall, above the nib 12, which defines with the nib 12 an arcuate capillary ink space 50 (Figs; 1 and 2) extending along the nib l2 and communicating with the slit l6 and pierce H. In the operation of the pen, ink is drawn into the space '50 by capillary action and maintains this space filled, whereby the adjacent portion of the pen is continually wetted and the pierce and slit always contain ink, and the pen therefore is at all times in condition for instant writing.

In accordance with the present invention, a capillary filler-and-reservoir element (also referred to as a filler element) is provided for defining an ink storage reservoir which fills by capillary action and which retains the ink by capillary action in such manner that it will not leak therefrom even when the pen is subjected to conditions which might otherwise cause leakage as, for example, changes in temperature or pressure but which reservoir permits the ink to be withdrawn uniformly from the pen under the capillary action established between the nib and the writing surface when the pen is used in writing. To this end the present invention provides a capillary filler-and-reservoir element 35 (illustrated somewhat diagrammatically in the drawings for a clearer understanding thereof), which takes the form of a thin-walled member 36 spirally wrapped or rolled into convolute form, the consecutive convolutions or turns of which are spaced apart to define therebetween a capillary ink storage space 31 of generally spiral, transverse cross-section and extending longitudinally substantially throughout the reservoir chamber Ill. The turns or convolutions of the spirally wrapped wall member or sheet preferably are spaced uniformly to provide a space of uniform Wall-to-wall width throughout its several turns. Since consecutive convolutions of the wall member 36 are relatively close together, they have the effect of being circular and disposed substantially concentrically with the spaces defined between consecutive convolutions substantially annular in shape. In other words, these spaces constitute in effect a series of concentric spaces or chambers, each of which merges or connects with the next adjacent space along a longitudinally extending line of juncture. However, while the construction of such filler element thus provides a space somewhat similar to a series of concentric chambers, all such chambers are connected for the flow of ink therebetween and actually form a single space.

The capillary filler element 35 is formed from a thin sheet of suitable material, such as metal or plastic, having a surface sufiiciently wettable by inks of the type customarily used in fountain pens to exert the desired capillary attraction on the ink. The material has suificient flexibility to permit it to be rolled into convolute form and sufficient rigidity to maintain its shape and position. In addition, the material is one which is suitably resistant to the ink used so that it is not deteriorated thereby and does not adversely affect the ink. Excellent results havebeen ob tained by forming the capillary filler element from materials such as silver foil, gold foil, or cellophane. The material from which the filler element is formed may be suitably treated in a known manner to provide a surface havingincreased wettability.

In order that the filler element may nave the maximum practicable ink capacity, it is so formed as to have as great as possible a capillarity, limited however to a capillarity not greater than that which will permit the ink to be written out of the pen. For a sheet formed from a material having any particular degree of wettability the capillarity of the filler element may be predetermined by suitably spacing the turns of the sheet to provide a capillary space of suitable width between opposing walls. The filler element preferably is made of such length that the capillary space therein is substantially filled when the pen is filled by holding it in a vertical position. Thus, even if the pen is filled by holding it at an acute angle to the surface of the body of ink from which the pen is being filled, the pen will not be overfilled, with the consequent possibility of leakage when moved to a vertical position.

The capillary filler element preferably is of such size that it substantially fills the space in the reservoir chamber ill. The width of the sheet, therefore, corresponds substantially to the length of the reservoir. The sheet is of such length that when rolled into spiral form, with the consecutive turns spaced the desired distance, thefiller element is of a diameter to fit snugly in the reservoir. It will be seen, therefore, that the capillary space 37 provides the principal ink storage space of the pen and constitutes in efiect the ink reservoir space. However, if desired, additional capillary reservoir space may be provided in the chamber in addition to that provided by the filler element as, for example, by spacing the outer turn of the filler element from the chamber wall.

The capillary filler element 35 after having of the mounting bushing 28, thereby placing the capillary space 31 in direct communication with the slots in the bushing 20. While the feed bar may terminate with its inner end flush with the rear or inner end of the mounting bushing 20, preferably it is of such length that it projects rearwardly into the reservoir chamber I0, as shown in Fig. 1. In order to accommodate the projecting end of the feed bar 35, the capillary filler element is formed with an axial, general- 1y cylindrical recess 38 (Fig. 7) of such length and diameter as to snugly receive the feed bar 30. The recess 38 may be provided by forming the sheet 35 with a notch or cut out portion 39 (Fig. 8) at one side edge of the sheet and extending throughout a portion only of the length of the sheet. The sheet 36 is then rolled, beginning with the end edge adjacent the notch so that when the sheet is rolled into convolute form (Fig. 7) the recess 38 formed. It will thus be seen that when the capillary filler element 35 is disposed in the reservoir chamber II] it receives and completely surrounds the projecting end of the feed bar30 and that at least certain of the convolutions of the capillary space 31 are placed in direct feeding communication with the feed slots 33 and 34 in the feed bar.

The capillary filler element 35 is retained in position in the reservoir chamber H3 in a suital: 1e manner, as for example, by causing the inner end of the rear body member 3 to abut against the rearward end of the capillary filler element 35: However, means preferably are provided for yieldingly positioning the capillary filler element 35' in such manner that it is held firmly in positionwithout, however, subjecting it to damaging 6 longitudinal stresses. This may be accomplished by inserting between the rear end of the capillary filler element 35 and the forward end 40 of the member 3 a resilient member such as a rubber ring or washer 4 I.

Means are provided for venting the reservoir chamber ID to atmosphere in order to maintain the pressure in the reservoir equal to atmospheric pressure and thus permit the pen to fill rapidly and to prevent leakage or choking of the pen such as otherwise might occur upon the establishment of a pressure differential between the interior and exterior of the pen as a result of a change in temperature of the pen or a change in atmospheric pressure.

In the specific embodiment illustrated (Fig. l) a vent passage 45 is provided in the rear body section 3 which passage communicates through a vent passage 46 in the tail piece 5 with an out let port 47 formed in the tail piece 5 adjacent the joint between the tail piece 5 and the rear member 3. Thus, when thetail piece 5 is unscrewed slightly the port 4! provides free communication between the vent passage 46 and the exterior of the pen. When the tail piece 5 is screwed down, the port 47 may be completely closed but, preferably, the joint is not made air tight and permits air to leak therethrough so that the interior of the pen is sufiiciently vented at all times to maintain substantial equality in the pressure between the external atmosphere and the interior of the pen.

The pen of the present invention is filled by merely inserting the forward end of the pen in a supply of ink, the tail piece 5 preferably being unscrewed slightly to provide free venting of the interior of the pen. Ink is drawn into the pen by capillary action and rises in the capillary system by reason of the capillary connection between the several portions thereof. Ink is drawn into the pen through the arcuate space 32 between the nib i2 and the feed bar 38 and thence through the feed slots 33 and 34 in the feed bar 30 and into the adjacent portions of the capillary space 37. Ink also may be drawn into the nib slit I5 and thence into the arcuate space 32. Also, ink may be drawn in through the space between the nib l2 and the-body and thence through the space between the nib I2 and the bushing 20 and thence through the slots 25 and into the capillary space 31. Where the pen is inserted to a sufficient extent in the supply of ink, ink may be drawn directly into the slots 26 and into the capillary space 37. The slots 26 provide filling passages having a relatively large total crosssectional area and thus permit rapid filling of the pen.

While ink is drawn initially into those portions of the capillary space 31, which are in direct communication with the feed slots 33 and 34, and with the slots 26 in bushing 20, it finds its way into the remaining portions of the spiral capillary space 31 inasmuch as all of the convolutions of this space are connected to one another. Ink rises in the space 31 by reason of the capillary action effective therein to a height Which-depends upon the capillarity of this space. I As explained hereinabove the capillary filler element 35 is so constructed that its capillarity is such as to cause ink to rise substantially to the top of this element and completely fill the capillary space 37.

Air which is in the capillary space 3? at the beginning of the filling operation is forced out by the incoming ink and finds its way through the vent passages 45 and 45 and the vent outlet 41 and out of the pen. Since all portions or convolutions of the convolute capillary space 31 communicate at the rear end of the capillary filler element with the vent passage 45, the air which is forced out of these spaces passes freely into the vent passage. The outer convolutions of the space 3'], which terminate adjacent the positioning washer 4|, may communicate with the vent 45 by reason of the fact that the abutment between the filler element 35 and the ring M is not sufficiently accurate to form an air seal. However, if desired, the ring may be provided with one or more slits or notches 42 to provide free passage of air through the wall of the ring 4|.

The convolute or spiral ink space 31, defined by the wall 36 is self-venting and the capillary filler element does not require the provision of any separate venting passage in the filler element between the several portions of the space 31 and the rear vent passage 45. Accordingly, substantially all of the void space within the capillary filler element 35 may be made of capillary width and utilized as ink storage space. In the event that an air bubble should form in any portion ofthe capillary space 3? at any time, and espe cially during the filling operation, such bubble will tend to rise in the capillary filler element until its passes out of the top of the latter. Since all of the several turns or convolutions of the capillary space 31 are connected, an air bubble, if

blocked against rising in any particular portion ,of the space 37, will drift into another portion wherein it can find its way out through the rear end of the filler element 35.

While it is very unlikely that a circumferentially continuous body of air would ever be formed across the capillary space between an upper and a lower body of ink, yet even if this should ever occur the pen would not air-lock and filling would filler element 35, a capillary path having a slight- 1y higher capillarity than a path in another portion of the filler element 31. Thus, ink will tend to rise along the path of greatest capillarity during filling and air will be expelled along the paths of lesser capillarity so that a condition which may be considered a condition of instability is created which will tend to break up any such continuous body of air and prevent it from causing air-locking of the pen. Moreover, the filler element 35 may be provided, in the course of rolling of the sheet 35, with a central space 48 of slightly greater transverse dimension than the remainder of the void space which central space provides a path of lesser capillarity and permits air to be vented therethrough during filling.

In writing, when the writing tip of the pen nib I2 is applied to the writing surface, the capillarity established between the writing tip and the writing surface causes ink to be drawn from the pen. Ink to replace that which is withdrawn in writing, or which evaporates during periods of non-writing is drawn from the capillary space 31, through the feed slots 33 and 34 in the feed bar 30, and finds its way into the arcuate space 32 and thence into the nib slit l6. Ink also may be drawn through the nib pierce l1 and into the space 50 above the nib, thereby providing a quantity of ink which maintains the nib slit wetted at all times so that the pen is ready for instant writing. As ink is drawn into the feed slots 33 and 34 from the adjacent portions of the capillary space 31, ink fiows from the remaining turns or the space 3! to replace such withdrawn ink and to maintain the feed slots 33 and 34 continuously filled with ink so that there is no interruption in the feed to the nib.

Air to replace ink which is withdrawn during writing or which evaporates from the nib during periods of non-writing may be drawn into the pen through the vent passages in a direction reversely to that in which ink is expelled during filling. Air also may enter through the opening I l in the front end of the pen and pass between the feed bar 30 and bushing 20 and thence through one or more of the openings 26 in the bushing 20 and into the capillary filler element 35. For reasons generally similar to those discussed in connection with the filling of the pen, the pen is not subject to air-locking during writing but writes freely and evenly until substantially emptied.

The feed connecting the capillary filler element with the writing tip of the nib l2 preferably is so formed that each section is progressively of greater capillarity toward the writing tip of the nib, thus insuring that ink will be drawn from the filler element to the writing tip. Accordingly, the feed slots 33 and 34 in the feed bar 30, are of lesser width and the space 31. The arcuate space 32 is of still lesser width, and the nib slit [6 has the least width and accordingly greatest capillarity of any portion of the ink path. On the other hand, the capillarity of the turns of the space 3? must be sufiicient to lift ink to the desired height in the pen when the pen is held vertically and the writing end inserted in a supply of ink. While the optimum width'of such space depends upon a number of factors, such as the wettability of the surfaces of the material forming the filler element and the nature of the ink used, such factors are capable of ready determination and the necessary spacing readily may be determined.

The capillary filler element may be formed in various sizes and dimensions. In one practical embodiment of a fountain pen employing my invention and having over-all dimensions approximately equal to those of a conventional fountain pen excellent results were obtained by forming a filler element as follows: A sheet of silver foil approximately 0.001 in thickness and approximately 8" long by approximately 1 wide was spirally wrapped into a roll (Fig. 1) approximately 0.310" in diameter wherein the consecutive turns of the sheet were spaced apart approximately 0.008" between opposite wall surfaces; the innermost turn was formed to provide an air vent passage of approximately 0.060" in diameter. The feed slots 33 and 34 in the feed bar (Fig. 1) and the capillary space 32 were of less width than the spacing between opposite wall surfaces of the filler element but were wider than the nib slit II, which was from 0.001 to 0.0015" in width, and generally were approximately 0.003" in width. My invention is not limited to the foregoing dimensions and it will be understood that the latter may be varied without departing from the invention. For example, excellent results have been obtained by forming filler elements from sheets rangin in size from 8" to 15 in length Y and 1%" to 2" in width, in which filler elements mately 0.008 for an 8" sheet to 0.004 for a sheet.

The several portions of the space 31 may be directly connected to the ink feed, thereby facilitating filling of the pen and insuring a highly effective feed of ink from the capillary space 31 to the nib l2. This may be accomplished by providing, at the forward end of the capillary filler element 35, means defining a plurality of feed passages extending from the feed bar slots 33 and 34 into communication with all of the several convolutions of the capillary space 31.

One form of pen embodying such a feed means is illustrated in Fig. 9, wherein a feed element which takes the form of a pad 60 of matter or woven fibers is interposed between the forward end of the capillary filler element 35 and the adjacent end of the chamber 10. The feed bar 6| preferably terminates at its rearward end substantially flush with the forward wall of the chamber 10 so that the pad extends across substantially the entire area of the end of the filler element 35 and the corresponding faces of i the end wall of the chamber ID, the rear end of the bushing 20 and therear end of the feed bar El The pad 60 thus provides direct communication between the several convolutions of the capillary space 31 and the feed slots 62 in the feed bar 6|, as well as the slots 26 in the bushing 20.

The pad 60 preferably is formed in such a manner as to provide a plurality of capillary passages having a greater capillarity than the space 3! of the capillary filler element 35. Preferably, the

fibers are constituted by a material, such as nylon,

which is not adversely affected by the ink and which is not absorbent.

The feed element also may be defined in other ways as illustrated, for example, in Figs. 10 and and by reason of the abutment between the forward end of the filler element 35 and these members each of slots intersects all of the several convolutions of the space 31 to place the latter in feed communication with the several feed slots formed in the feed bar 6|.

The operation of the forms of the invention illustrated in Figs. 9, 10, and 11, is substantially similar to that described in connection with the form shown in Fig. 1. However, the direct feed connection between the feed bar slots and the several convolutions of the space 31 provided by the feed element (60 and 10 respectively) permits more rapid filling owing to the greater cross-sectional area of the space 31 which is directly connected to the ink in the passages.

The capillary filler element, instead of being formed from a spirally wrapped sheet, may be constituted by a plurality of tubes or cylindrical wall members of graduated diameters disposed in telescoping, spaced'coaxial arrangement defining therebetween a plurality of annular capillary ink spaces. Such a construction is illustrated somewhat diagrammatically in Figs. 12 and 13 wherein a filler element I20 includes a plurality of thin-walled cylindrical members 12! disposed in telescoping coaxial arrangement and it spaced apart to define annular chambers 1220f capillary width. The cylindrical members I are formed from material which has a surface suitably wettable to provide the desired capillary action and which is sufficiently rigid to retain the shape and position of the walls and resistantto the ink.

These members may be formed of glass, plastics or metal. The cylindrical members I2l preferably are maintained in spaced relation by a plurality of indents or projections I23 disposed at the ends thereof and arranged approximately apart around the periphery of the tube. Preferably several tubes are secured together to form an integral unit and this conveniently may be accomplished by securing them at the indents or projections as by fusing or other suitable mode of joining.

The filler element I20 may be incorporated in a pen such as illustrated, for example, in Fig. 9 or Fig. 10 of the drawings by substituting it for the filler element 35 and may be held, in place suitably as by a ring such as the ring 4i shown in Fig. 1.

The operation of this latter form of my invention is generally similar to that described in connection with the pen shown in Figs. 9 and 10 of the drawings. In filling, ink is drawn into the individual capillary spaces I22 and rises therein as will be understood. The air which is in these spaces is forced out through the rear end of the pen by the incoming ink. Owing to the relatively large transverse (i. e. circumferential) dimension of each annular capillary space relatively to its capillary width, there is substantially no likelihood of any air-locking. Thus, if an air bubble should form in any of these spaces, it would be very unlikely that such bubble would extend continuously throughout the entire circumferential extent of the space. Even if this should occur, it is believed the ink would tend to rise unevenly in the space and a portion of such bubble would tend to drift or be forced upwardly in the space and the space thus would not air-lock. For generally similar reasons the filler element is not subject to air-locking during writing.

It will be seen from the foregoing that the present invention provides a capillary fountain pen, wherein the capillary filler element is so formed that it provides a maximum of effective ink space in a pen of any particular overall dimensions. The wall member which forms the capillary filler element may be made of very thin material and may be as thin as approximately 0.001 of an inch in thickness and thus consumes a relatively small percentage of the total volume of the capillary filler element. Also, inasmuch as it is not necessary to provide a separate air vent passage in the capillary filler element, substantially all of the void space within the filler element may be employed as ink storage space. Moreover, the capillary filler element is inherently self-rigid and does not require any supporting or mounting means but may be inserted directly in the reservoir chamber of a pen body and may be supported solely by contact with the side and end walls of such chamber. In the event that it is found desirable to provide a positioning member such as the ring described hereinbefore, such member may be of relatively small dimensions and thus not consume any substantial space.

The capillary filler element may be formed simply and inexpensively from any one of a relatively large number of suitable materials, thus permitting a wide range of selection of materials in the formation of this member.

l. A fountain pen comprising The assembly of the capillary filler element in the body is an extremely simple operation and does not require any special tools or the use of any accurately machined or close fitting parts. While it is of course desirable that the pile and feed bar be members.

- The capillary filler element has an ink space of relatively largecross section which provides a fiow path of relatively large capacity and thus the pen may be filled rapidly by capillary action. The large cross section of the ink space also permits it to'be connected through a relatively large number of capillary feed passages to the feed section thus insuring an adequate feed of ink to the nib.

The large cross-sectional extent of the capillary space within the filler element insures that the filler element will free itself of any air bubbles which may be created in the ink space either during filling or during writing and thus will prevent air-locking. Moreover, the capillary filler element is so formed that substantially all of the capillary space is of uniform capillarity and therefore substantially all of this space will fill and write out. Accordingly, the filler element has a relatively high effective ink capacity, In addition, the filler element is of such form that it has a minimum of corners or sudden changes in cross-sectional area and thus there is a minimum possibility of capillary edge efiect occuring within the pen which might otherwise detrimentally affect the rapidity and completeness of filling and the completeness of writing out.

I believe that the operation and advantages of my invention will be well appreciated from the foregoing description, and it is to be understood that, while I have shown and described several 'forms of my invention, other details and arrangements of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention as defined by the claims that follow,

now Patent No. 2,522,554 dated September 19,

I claim:

posed wall e lements spaced apart to provide a plurality of radially spaced capillary ink paslsages each of which extends substantially throughout the length of said filler-and-reservoir a pen body, a

element, and ink feed means connecting said capillary passages with said writing element.

2. A fountain pen comprising a pen body, a writing element at the writing end of said body, a capillary filler-and-reservoir element in said body and including a plurality of tubular members diseach of said passages having a substantially greater transverse extent than width and ink feed means connecting said passages and said writing element.

4. A capillary ink storage element for a fountain pen comprising a plurality of annularly disposed wall elements spaced apart to provide a plurality of radially spaced capillary ink storage spaces each of which extends substantially through the length of said filler element, said element having sufiicient capillarity to fill itself by capillary action and to retain the ink therein but insufiicient to prevent Withdrawal of the ink in writing.

, 5. A capillary ink storage element for use in a fountain pen said element comprising a series of hollow, cylindrical members disposed in concentric telescoped relation and defining therebetween a series of substantially unobstructed and concentric annular capillary ink storage spaces extending substantially throughout the length of said ink storage element, said element having sufficient capillarity to fill itself by capillary action and to retain the ink therein but insufficient to prevent withdrawal of ink in writing.

6. A capillary ink storage element for a fountain pen comprising a series of substantially concentric telescoped, tubular members secured together at spaced points to form a unitary structure wherein said tubular members define therebetween a series or substantially concentric capillary ink storage spaces, said element having sufficient capillarity to fill itself by capillary action and to retain the ink therein but insufiloient to prevent withdrawal of the ink in writing.

HARLAN H. ZODTNER.

No references cited. 

